Venomous
by Angie13Sixx
Summary: Yumika Shihoin had been gone for decades, trying to heal the wounds left behind after an event that occurred 100 years ago. Deciding to return to Karakura, Yumika thought she could spend a relaxing time with an old friend. Instead, however, she gets dragged back into a world she thought she left behind
1. chapter 1

**Part One**

 **Chapter One**

Coming back to Karakura town might have been a mistake, because as soon as I got here, that bastard Kisuke had already sent me out on a 'mission'. Normally, I wouldn't have minded, since I didn't really have much to do with my basically immortal life, but this particular job required me to to interact with high schoolers. And wear a short skirt. No matter how much I pulled down the skirt, it always felt too short. Hell, I'm pretty sure I've passed since arriving here has had a glimpse of my nearly exposed backside. Kisuke truly owed me for this, and I was getting what I deserved, one way or another.

Eventually, I had arrived at my destination, classroom 1-3, which would be my least favourite place until Kisuke decided that my mission was done, maybe even after I've left this place. Before I could open the door, I froze. I was surprised at my own nerves, I had fought many battles, dealt with hundreds of hollows, and yet.. The thought of facing a class of fifteen years old kind of scared me. Maybe I had isolated myself for longer than I thought.

Clenching my fists, I took in a few deep breaths to gather my nerves. 'It won't be that bad' I thought to myself, even though I didn't really believe myself. I've always hated teenagers, even when I was one myself. Steeling my nerves, I reached for the door, but before I could even reach it, it slammed open. I jumped back a bit in surprise, just barely missing the teacher who came storming out, but she stopped in surprise when she noticed me.

"Oh?" She blinked owlishly down at me. "Are you the new student?"

"Yes..?" I murmured unsurely, eyeing the suspicious grin that starting growing on her face.

"Good! I was just about to go looking for you! Well, come on in so that I can introduce you to everyone!"

I didn't even get a chance to do anything before she grabbed my wrist, rather tightly might I had, and pulled me into the classroom. Instantly, all eyes were on me, and I started fidgeting. I hated being the centre of attention. I had been trained to stay away from people's eyes, spent hundreds of years in hiding, so this feeling was unusual.

I could already hear the whispers forming. I was different, compared to everyone else in the school. With my dark skin, I assume I was the only one with such a skin tone, and dark brown hair with startling golden eyes. Teenagers loved gossiping about new and unusual things and people, didn't they?

"Listen up everyone!" their teacher clapped her hands, bringing all eyes toward her, much to my relief. "I'd like to introduce a new student who will be joining us from now on. Please welcome Yumika Shihoin"

"I hope we can all be friends" I said as cheerfully as I could manage, and bowed toward the class. I lifted my head slightly and gazed around the room until my eyes landed on a head of startling orange hair. 'So..'I internally mused. 'This is the kid Kisuke wanted me to watch? Then where is..' I continued my search until spotting the other person I was tasked with overseeing. She was watching me, grey eyes narrowed in suspicion. She no doubt recognised my last name, Kisuke had informed me that she was a Kuchiki, another noble, so she should at least be aware of the other families. But I don't recognize her, so the same should apply to her. I wasn't as important as the others, so I would be surprised if someone even remembered my name.

Once I was done with my survey, I stood up with my hands clasped in front of me. I avoided looking at the students who's attention had once again fallen back to me, instead keeping my eyes back on the ground.

"Let's see.." the teacher, who's name I had already forgotten, murmured as she searched for an open seat. She eventually spotted one and grinned. "Why don't you go take a seat behind Inoue?"

It wasn't hard to notice to notice where my seat was, as the busty, ginger haired 'Inoue' was waving frantically with a large, friendly smile on her face. I don't know why, but instead of alarming me, those actions calmed me down. When I reached my seat, I was immediately greeted by the bubbly girl, who dramatically whispered so that their teacher wouldn't notice.

"I'm Orihime Inoue, it's nice to meet you"

I found myself smiling at the lively human, her peppy mood instantly brightening my own. "You as well. I hope we can be friends"

For some reason, I meant that. It had been some time since I actually had some friends. Especially ones that were like Orihime. It wouldn't hurt to be friends with this girl while I was here, it was just too bad it would be a short lived friendship.

 **XxxxX**

Classes went by rather slow and boring, with subjects I knew even better than most of the teachers, and when lunch finally came, I nearly started crying in relief. Who knew school could be so mind numbing?

After regretfully turning down Orihime's offer of eating lunch with them, I followed Ichigo and Rukia up the roof. I wasn't even sure if we were allowed up here. I had tried my best to remain hidden, but I seemed to have underestimated a teenage boy's ability to find a girl.

Shihōin-chaaaan!"

A hand grabbed my shoulder, and I released a surprised squeal before throwing my clenched first in the direction of the person's face. It connected, and the next thing I heard was a man groaning. Looking back, I saw that the person I had hit was a boy I shared a class with. He was clutching his nose, and had fallen to his knees as he cried dramatically.

"Oh!" I gasped. "I'm so sorry... Uhm..." I tried to recall the boy's name, if I even knew it at all, but kept pulling a blank

""Keigo.." he muttered dejectedly, still holding his nose.

"...Keigo!" I finished, as if I hadn't forgotten his name at all. "You startled me, and I acted on instinct.."

"Don't mind him" a second boy spoke, making me notice him for the first time. Although, his attention was on me. Instead it was on his phone. "He'll be fine"

"Are you sure?" I questioned skeptically, eyeing the sulking brunette on the ground.

"I'm sure" he snapped his phone shut and finally looked at me. "Hey, why don't you join us for lunch?"

"Uhm.." I glanced toward where Ichigo and the Kuchiki was. I wanted to keep my distance, but infiltrating their group seemed like a better way to watch over them. "Sure?"

"Great" he smiled kindly then headed over to where the duo were.

I gazed back at Keigo, before following the darker haired boy, arms folded behind my back. If his friend thought he'd be fine, then he probably would be. Besides, I didn't even hit him that hard.

"Hey!" the kid who's name I still didn't know called out to the two as he approached them. "You two are together again"

The two turned towards us, and Rukia's eyes lingered on me for a moment. She really was suspicious. Suspicion was good, but why would a noble from Soul Society attend high school in the world of the living?

"You two are quite close, huh?"

"Mizuiro! And.. Yumika?" I nodded with a slight grin. So, that was the guy's name? Good to know. It would've been awkward to continue to hang out with him without even knowing his name. Let's just hope I actually remember it.

"Do we look like friends?" Ichigo scoffed.

Beside him, Rukia was struggling with what looked like a juice box. I held back a smile, I felt the tiniest bit of pity for her. I remembered how long it took me to figure it out when it first came out. I sometimes wondered if my mother didn't drop me on my head as a baby, because while I was good with some things, I was completely retarded with others.

"Am I wrong?" Mizuiro questioned, blinking his wide eyes at the duo. "Oh well," he shrugged. "If you say so. But Ichigo, you should be more aware of what people will think"

"Stupid. If I cared about what people thought, I'd have dyed my hair black"

"I actually like your hair colour" I pipped up, earning the attention of the two boy's, as Kuchiki was still struggling with the juice box. "It's.. Refreshing and different"

"Thanks, I guess.. So, what brings you here?"

"Mizuiro invited me" I shrugged. "I hope you don't mind"

"Not at all"

"So this is it!" Rukia exclaimed. Looking over, I noticed she had discovered the straw. "But where do I poke this?.."

"Hello, Kuchiki-san" Mizuiro greeted the shinigami.

"Huh?" Rukia noticed the human boy, and quickly put on her 'kind' smile, although it looked a bit too forced to me. "Oh! Hello, err.. Kojima-kun!"

"Right! I haven't introduced myself yet. I'm Mizuiro Kojima, age fifteen. I like.."

"Picking up girls" Ichigo interrupted.

"Huh?!" Mizuiro exclaimed, looking at Ichigo with eyes wide in horror. "No way! That's mean!"

"He looks like a dork, but he's a real flirt. Watch out for him"

"Stop it! You'll ruin my reputation! Besides, I'm only interested in older women"

"That's why she has to be careful"

Even though Ichigo had referred to Rukia, I subconsciously stepped a bit away from Mizuiro. I was even older than the Kuchiki, I guessed, so I was in more of a risk. That is, if the boy would even be interested in someone as old as I am. Seeing Rukia still struggling with her drink, I walked over to her and took the box from her. She was about to protest, but paused when she saw me stick the straw into it's designated hole. I then handed it back to her.

"There you go" I smiled at her.

"T-Thank you.."

"What's this?!" I heard a familiar voice yell out. Looking to the side, I saw Keigo, finally recovered from my blow. "Both the beautiful transfer students?! What are you doing here?!"

"Mizuiro invited me/Ichigo lured Kuchiki here" Mizuiro and I chorused.

"N-No way!" Ichigo cried out.

"What?! Ichigo, Why you.." Keigo seemed outraged, but that changed rather quickly when he popped in front of the Kurosaki, patting his shoulder.. "Good job"

"T-Thanks.." Ichigo muttered, a bit disturbed at Keigo's behavior. "But.. You're so happy you're crying?"

Keigo ignored the orange haired boy and made his way over to Rukia and I. Standing up straight, he raised his hand and saluted us while.. Crying? This boy was strange. "I'm so glad you've come, Captains! To this garden of masculinity"

I shared an awkward glance with Kuchiki, before slowly nodding my head. "Uh, sure.."

"Alright, everyone! We're partying it up during lunch!"

"With milk coffee and yakidoba bread?" Mizuiro murmured.

"Shut up! It's the spirit that counts! And, Kuchiki-san, Shihoin-chan.. If you're ever in need, don't hesitate to come to me!"

"Uh..thanks?" I muttered unsurely, wondering why this boy isn't in a mental hospital yet.

"Anytime!" Keigo grinned and stepped back...

..right into a rather imposing figure. I blinked at the boy, who towered over the rest of his. I realised then that I was wrong, I wasn't the only one with dark skin, although his was lighter than mine. His dark brown hair hung in front of his face, partially obscuring his eyes. I noticed a bandage on his cheek, as well as some wrapped around his arm when he raised his hand to wave at Ichigo. Chad, I heard Ichiho say. A strange name.

"Are you.. injured?" Ichigo questioned the giant man.

Now only noticing the man's state, Keigo completely turned toward him, surprise evident on his face. "Hey, you are injured! What happened?"

"A steel beam fell on my head" Chad explained.

"a steel beam?" I asked incredulously, staring at the large man in shock.

Chad turned his gaze toward me and raised an eyebrow quizzically. Oh, right. I hadn't been introduced to him yet.

"Uhm.. I'm Yumika. I started here today.."

"Sado Yasutora" he grunted.

Sado? Then why did they call him Chad? Teenagers are strange, honestly. I bit back a sigh and smiled up at him.

"So, uh.. What about your hand?"

"I had a collision with a motorcycle. And the rider got hurt bad, so I just carried him to the hospital"

"You got hit by a motorcycle, and still carried the rider to the hospital?" I sputtered, my eyes going wide. "What are you even made of?.."

Sado shrugged it off before placing a birdcage down onto the ground. I gazed at the parakeet, a shiver went down my spine as I felt something come from it. Although, I wasn't exactly sure. It wasn't completely unusual for a spirit to take an animal as a host, but it was rare. And I was hoping this wasn't the case.

"Huh?" Keigo blinked at the bird. "What's with the bird?"

"Hello" the parakeet chirped, making my blood freeze. "My name is Yuichi Shibata. What's your name?"

I was really hoping I was wrong, that there was nothing strange about the bird. But life seemed to hate me, as I was right. There was a spirit in the bird.

 **XxxxX**

After school had ended, I had followed Kuchiki and Kurosaki around for a few more hours. Once or twice, Rukia's instincts had kicked in and she looked around, but hadn't seen me. For once, I was actually quite thankful for this restrictive gigai*.

Deciding that I had done enough for today, I headed back home to the shouten. Strangely enough, neither Jinta nor Ururu were sweeping like they usually were. I shrugged it off and headed into the actual shop part, and went to the back, grabbing a box off of one of the shelves on my way. I threw open the door, finding Kisuke sitting at the table behind it.

"I'm home~" I sung as I entered the room.

"Welcome home! How was school?"

Instead of answering him, I slipped off off my shoulder bag and threw it at Kisuke's face. It connected with his face with a loud 'smack', sending him falling onto his back. Ignoring his wailing, I went over the table and sat down. I opened the box of konpeito* I had taken and popped it into my mouth.

"You're overreacting" I rolled my eyes at him when his wailing started to become a bit annoying.

"I think you broke my nose!"

"Stop exaggerating. I didn't throw it that hard"

"Yumika-dono"

I turned my attention to the door and noticed Tessai's towering figure. His gaze wasn't on me, however, instead it was on the box of candy I held in my hands.

"Did that, my chance, come from our store?"

I sighed before straightening my back, looking him straight in the eye. "Tessai, I'm doing a job for you that not only requires me a skirt that all but exposes my backside, but will also almost always have me surrounded by young, horny teenagers that most likely will violate me with their eyes every moment they get. The least you can do is give me free candy as compensation for this trauma"

Tessai stayed silent for a moment, his intense gaze remaining locked on mine, before he finally released a sigh. "Very well, but please limit yourself. We don't need you eating all of our merchandise"

I grinned cheekily at the large man, the seriousness melting from me. "I make no promises, Tessai"

"Speaking of your job," Kisuke spoke as he sat up, hand pressed against his nose. "How is that going so far?"

"It's boring as shit, Kisuke" I groaned. "I don't see why you're even having me watch them, they're pretty normal. Well, as normal as a shinigami* from a noble family and a human with shinigami powers can be"

"Don't worry, I have my reasons"

I narrowed my eyes at the blonde shopkeeper. "This better not be something bad"

"You'll find out, eventually. For now, why don't you get some sleep before dinner?"

I stared at him, long and hard, contemplating whether or not to drop the matter. At least for now. But, I was tired. A whole day of school, then following Ichigo and Rukia around left me tired, I didn't have the stamina to do this kind of thing anymore. And all those naps in class only cured my boredom, and not my exhaustion. I stood up, deciding to let Kisuke have his way today.

"Don't think this is over, Kisuke" I warned him. "I want answers, and if I don't get them, you'll end up with more than a broken nose"

With my threat said, I headed toward the door, tossing more of the candies into my mouth. Just as I left, I heard Kisuke muttering to himself.

"Still exactly the same"

 **XxxxX**

 **Hello everyone!**

 **That ends the first chapter of this fan fiction, I hope that you liked it.**

 **I won't have a set updating schedule, as I can't really afford to always have an internet connection other than FreeBasics, but I will try to get a chapter out once a week**

 **Angie_Sixx**

 **Gigai = Artificial body**

 **Konpeito = A kind of Japanese sugar candy**

 **Shinigami = Death God**

 ***Edited***


	2. Chapter 2

**Part One**

 **Chapter Two**

It was a few days later that I found myself watching Ichigo's house from a neighbour's house. Although, 'watching' might not be the right word to use, as my attention was instead on a fashion magazine I had bought on my way here. After years of isolation, it seems that I had become completely oblivious to today's trends. Especially when it came to fashion. If I was going to pretend to be a 15 year old high school girl, I might as well do some research.

I went interrupted for quite a while, until the slamming of the house's front door startled me, as well as some birds who were sharing the roof with me. Now annoyed, I gazed over my magazine to see what the trouble was. I spotted a familiar head of bright orange hair darting down the street, with Kuchiki yelling after him.

I took my time getting up, feeling spiteful even though this act wouldn't bother them at all, and shoved my magazine into my bag. I stretched out my arms and legs before I followed after them across the rooftops.

I didn't get very far until I was made aware of something very important. A child yelling about a girl on the roof to his mother reminded me of the fact that I was still in my gigai. I paused, eyes wide like a deer caught in headlights, and looked toward the mother screaming at me. I laughed nervously and waved before scrambling toward the edge at a fast, yet human pace.

When I dropped onto the ground, I waited a few moments until I was sure the woman was gone, and hurried to where I could sense Ichigo and Rukia were. I arrived just in time to see them split up, and I nearly groaned. This had left me with a dilemma. I couldn't exactly watch over them at the same time, and Kisuke hadn't specified which of the two was more important. Although, really thinking about it, the choice wasn't that hard. Rukia was defenceless.

Making up my mind, I quickly took off after the Kuchiki. It occurred to me that I wasn't even sure what they were after, but gazing over Rukia's head, I got my answer. I could just barely make out Sado's form running ahead of her.

But when had he gotten here? Last I checked, he was resting in the clinic attached to the Kurosaki house. When did he... I groaned softly. If Yoruichi ever found out I let someone, a human no less, slip by me, she'd never let me live it down.

"What a nice smell"

My blood ran cold when I heard a voice. It seems like I wasn't the only one who had been chasing the two. Rukia came to a stop in front of me, frantically looking around. That's when she spotted me.

"You.."

I noticed the hollow start to form behind her, and couldn't help but cry out a warning. "Rukia, Watch out!"

Rukia had just barely dodged the hollow when it went to take a bite out of her. "Yumika!" she yelled at me, her eyes staying on the hollow. "Run away!"

I was tempted to. Some would call that cowardice, but I considered it self preservation. But for some reason, I couldn't. I didn't understand it, she was just a shinigami, someone I was supposed to hate. Yet, I couldn't find in myself to just abandon her.

So, when I noticed the hollow was going to again try and chomp on her, I started running as fast as I could in this gigai. When I was close enough, I put all my strength in my legs and leapt up into the air. I raised my leg high, and brought my foot down with all the power I could muster onto it's head. While it was dazed, I used it's back as a springboard and jumped down onto the ground in front of Rukia.

"Yumika.." she breathed out, eyes wide in surprise. But before she could say anything else, I grabbed her wrist and pulled her with me as I started running away from the hollow.

"Come on!" I hissed at her, and it seemed to be what she needed because she stopped resisting, instead running alongside me.

It didn't take long for the hollow to recover, however, and it appeared in front of us. "That actually hurt, you little pest" it hissed. "I'll make sure you suffer a slow and painful death"

I barely heard it, too caught in my shock. I knew Kisuke said this gigai would restrict my abilities, but to this extent? There wasn't even a scratch on it! I needed to talk to Kisuke about changing my gigai so that I could at least defend myself against hollows.

Beside me, Rukia seemed to be having a dilemma. She couldn't protect us if she was pretending to be human, so she seemed to have no choice and reveal herself. And not a moment too soon, as the hollow was charging at us.

"Ye Lord!" she started her chant, aiming her palm at the hollow. "Mask of flesh and bone, ye who bears the name of man! Truth and temperance, upon this sinless wall of dreams unleash but slightly the wrath of your claws! Hado* thirty three : Sokatsui!*" A flash of lightning shot out from her palm, crashing right into the hollow's mask and causing smoke to rise from the spot, obscuring it's face from us.

"R-Rukia.." I stuttered, fake shock lacing my voice. "what exactly was that?!"

She turned toward me, mouth opening as if to speak. But I never got to hear what she was about to say, as it was then that we noticed the hollow emerging from the smoke, without any injury.

"Impossible.." Rukia whispered. "It didn't even scratch him..."

Even I was surprised. I knew it would take her a while to regain her power, but she should've had more than this!

"I know that trick" the hollow crackled. "It's a shinigami spell, isn't it?"

"Okay.. What the hell is it talking about, Rukia?" I furrowed my brows in confusion, glancing at her from the corner of my eye.

"I'll tell you later" she tried to assure me, but even a human would be able to tell that she didn't mean it.

"Yours is so weak" the hollow continued, amusement was clear in it's voice. "I felt nothing"

Rukia grabbed hold of my wrist and pulled me back with her as she leapt away from the hollow, who leaned in towards us. Rukia's grip was rather tight on my wrist, but I didn't say anything. I knew the frustration she was feeling.

"I see, So you -are- a shinigami! No wonder you smell so good!" the hollow laughed in delight. "A shinigami, huh? How nice! I've devoured two shinigami who tried to help that kid pass on"

I stilled, my eyes widening in rage while my fists clenched. True, I didn't consider myself a shinigami anymore, but this.. This pissed me off. They only wanted to help the poor kid move on, they didn't deserve to die. And now this hollow is _bragging_ about it?! Rukia was tense beside me, telling me that she was feeling the same rage.

"They were quite delicious" the hollow finished, sounding quite pleased with himself.

"By kid," Rukia finally said something, sounding a lot calmer than she was obviously feeling. "Do you mean the spirit inside that parakeet?"

"Yes" the hollow confirmed.

"It seems like you keep chasing that soul. Why is that?"

"Well, if you'll let me eat you without resisting, I might tell you"

"As if, you hideous freak" I scoffed before I could stop myself, anger seeping into my voice. "Now tell us why you're chasing after Yuichi?!"

Before I knew it, the hollow's arm shot out and grabbed me the neck. I released a strangled cry of surprise as it slammed me against a wall, I then grabbed onto it's wrist and desperately clawed at it's skin. I could hear Rukia calling out my name, but she couldn't exactly do much at the moment

"You're pretty mouthy for a powerless human" it growled at me, it's awful breath hit my face and it was terrible enough to make me gag. "I'll take great joy in devouring you"

It's hold on me started to tighten, and I felt panic start to awaken in me. If I didn't do anything, I could actually die. But then Rukia would know. _They_ would know. Although, at the moment it didn't seem as important. I breathed in, and prepared to force myself from the gigai.

But, I was saved from that at the last moment by a tanned hand slamming into the side of the hollow's face. It released me, and I fell to my knees, gasping in as much air as I could manage. I looked up, and noticed that my saviour was..

"Sado?"

To say I was surprised was an understatement. I wouldn't have thought that someone like him would have that much reiatsu* to actually see a hollow. I pushed myself up and looked at the tall teenager, and sweat dropped at the sight of Sado vigorously punching empty air. It seems I was wrong.

"What's this?" the hollow cackled, rubbing the side of it's mask. "He just happened to hit me? I thought he could see me-" a fist cut him off once more, and I couldn't help but grin.

"Nice hit, Sado!" I held up my thumbs, but only got a grunt in return.

"Damn" the hollow hissed before he leapt into the air, arms extended. My grin fell when wings sprouted from them.

"You can't touch me here! What are you going to do now, good-for-nothing shinigami?"

"Don't just stand there!" Rukia yelled at Sado. "Get away! He's up in the air!"

"Transfer student, you can see ghosts?"

"Now's not the time, Sado!" I hissed at the teen. "We can't do anything from this distance!"

"Where is he?"

"..What?" Rukia and I chorused, starimg at him incredulously.

"He's flying, isn't he?" he asked rhetorically, walking over to a nearby post. "In which direction?"

For a moment, Rukia and I basked in stunned silence, our eyes meeting. It was Rukia that ended up speaking. "What good would knowing that do?"

Without answering the Kuchiki, Sado wrapped his arms around the post and released a battle cry. I started protesting, but he ignored me and began pulling on the post, with us staring in disbelief. The post eventually snapped, and Sado gazed toward Rukia.

"Now, where is he?"

"Right there!" Rukia yelled without hesitation. "Swing down right there"

He grunted and did exactly as told, bringing down the post down smach onto the hollow's face and sending it crashing into the ground.

"Way to go Sado!" I cheered loudly, a broad grin coming onto my face as I ran over to the hollow's immobile form. I put my foot against his back leg and pressed down as hard as I could, jeering at it. "Give it up already!"

"Someone's on his way to finish you off" Rukia added.

My grin slipped from my face as the hollow started laughing, my eyes narrowed at it and my nose scrunched up in annoyance. "What the hell is so funny?"

"No wonder you shinigami.." it started as it proceeded to push itself up. "the whole bunch of you, are always getting beaten by us!"

Something was coming, I could feel it. The bushes were rustling, and I turned toward them just as small creatures leapt from them. I tried to warn the other two, but it was too late. The creatures jumped onto us and pushed us to the floor, pinning our arms against our backs. I tried struggling against him, but to no avail. These things were surprisingly strong.

"Looks like the shoe's on the other foot" the hollow cackled, looking down at us. "You shinigami take us too lightly. That's why you end up like this. Now... Who shall I eat first?"

 **XxxxX**

 **Whelp, that's done.. I hope you enjoyed that!**

 **I changed to first person, and discovered that I prefer writing this way. So, I've gone back and edited the first chapter.**

 **Thanks for reading!**

 **Angie_Sixx**

 **Hado = Way of Destruction**

 **Sokatsui = Blue fire crash down**

 **Reiatsu = Spirit pressure**


	3. Chapter 3

**Part One**

 **Chapter Three**

Part of me believed this was the end, that we were finally done for. Maybe it was because I had always been ready to die, or believed that I had died that night a hundred years ago. But fate proved me wrong again, when the unnaturally strong teen beside me actually broke free from the hollows pinning him down, much to the hollow keeping us captive's shock.

Said hollow escaped into the air when Sado freed Rukia and I. I scowled at the beast and rolled my shoulders. "This guy is really starting to irritate me"

I looked back towards our saviour, and blinked when I saw him punching air once again. "Um, Sado.."

"Not there!" Rukia shouted. "Up above!"

"In the sky?"

"Yeah" I confirmed. "Rather cowardly move, in my opinion. But what are we going to do now? We can't reach him anymore"

A few moments of silence stretched between the three of us before Rukia spoke. "I have a plan"

If hearing the plan hadn't put doubts in my mind, seeing it in action certainly would have. I wasn't alone in my skepticism, Sado was also questioning the plan. Understandable, as Sado was holding up a crouching Rukia.

"Are you sure about this?" I questioned the Shinigami.

"Yes. We'll utilise Sado's strength and my brains"

"And what exactly am I suppose to do?"

"Stay out of the way"

"That was..kind of offensive"

"This plan doesn't seem very smart" Sado spoke up.

"I don't have to take that from you" Rukia shot back defensively. "Let's go! In the direction of the Tiger!"

"Which way is the tiger?"

"Left" I informed the teen, who's aim shot a bit too much to the left, much to Rukia's annoyance.

"You fool! That's too high!"

I had to look away from this train wreck just waiting to happen. All I heard was Rukia yelling 'Fire' and Sado's grunt, followed by the hollow's screaming.

"Give up!" I heard Rukia yell at the Hollow.

"O-Okay! I-I give up!" For a moment, I thought Rukia's plan had actually worked. Until the hollow spoke up again. "Just kidding"

I turned back just in time to see one of the tiny hollows shooting what looked like leeches at the dark haired Shinigami. The force sent Rukia falling back to the ground, but fortunately Sado arrived in time to catch her before she hit the ground. I quickly went over to them, slightly bothered by the leeches stuck to her.

"Rukia! What happened?"

"He caught me by surprise" she murmured. "Damnit... what in the world are these...leeches?!"

Before any of us could say anything else, the hollow cackled "Exactly! Those won't come off easily. Besides, they're my targets"

Those words sent my instincts into overdrive. When he stuck out his tongue, I grabbed Sado by the arm and pulled him away from Rukia, just as the leeches on her exploded.

"Rukia!" I felt bad about not being able to help her, but there was nothing I could've done.

"What happened?" Sado, who couldn't see the leeches, questioned.

"Are you surprised?" the hollow cackled. "Those leeches are small bombs. They respond to sounds from my tongue, and explode! Your guard was wide open!"

Sado pulled away from me, and despite my objections, started walking toward the hollow. I clenched my jaw, fighting the urge to chase after the giant, but stayed by the injured shinigami.

"You want to take me on, you lummox?" The hollow spoke, then brought our attention to something beside him.

"Yuichi" I gasped when I finally saw the parakeet in his cage. So that's why it ran off earlier. I clenched my first and pushed myself up, but stopped when Rukia called me back.

"Yumika! Stay back!"

I had to keep up my human facade, I knew that, but the way Yuichi looked.. I was starting to get pissed off at the hollow. It was getting harder to keep the act up. That was always one of my problems. I couldn't keep my emotions under control.

"It seems you understand now, big boy" the hollow continued smugly. "Now, it's time for us to play, Shinigami! Now run! Let me enjoy hunting you down!"

Despite being injured, Rukia stood up. I immediately turned toward her, eyes wide.

"You can't be serious?! Look at you! You won't survive!"

"Don't worry about me. You two just stay here. If you take even a step, he plans to blow up that cage"

"But, Rukia.."

"I gave my word.." she smiled at us. "not to mess up"

"Your word?" Sado muttered, but Rukia took of then without a word, with the hollow soon following.

 **XxxxX**

Some time had passed since I was left alone with Sado, and I ended up leaning against the wall, eyes focused on the hollows guarding Yuichi's cage.

"Transfer Student"

I nearly jumped at the sound of Sado's voice. "Y-Yes?"

"Why were you chasing us?"

"I saw Rukia chasing after you, and decided to follow. It seemed like you were in trouble"

"Since when have you been able to see ghosts?"

"Since I was a child"

"How long have you been able to fight?"

"You're being oddly talkative today" I glanced at him from the corner of my eye. I sighed when he stayed silent, and decided on answering. "My parents made me take martial arts when I was a child"

"Where are your parents?"

"Gone" I frowned. "Look, Sado, I get. Asking questions might get your mind of off current events. But right now is not the time to be playing twenty questions"

Silence again enveloped us, my mind subconsciously tracking the hollow and Rukia as I tried to figure out a plan on how to free Yuichi.

There was one thing I could try, but the problem was with Sado. I glanced at him with a frown, Rukia would erase his memories of this event, so there's no way he would remember this.

"Hey, Sado.. I have a plan to free Yuichi"

This gained the tall teen's attention, his one exposed eye went over to me, silently asking me to continue.

"But.. You have to promise you won't tell anyone"

I waited for him to nod, and when he did, I slid out a butterfly knife from my bag. Sado's eye widened slightly upon seeing.

"Transfer student, where did you-"

"Not important" I quickly interrupted him. I didn't want to admit my cheap ass got this at a 100 yen store.

I took a deep breath, and let my reiatsu seep through my gigai. Not enough to get me caught, but just enough to let me flash step over to the bird cage. I lashed out, the blade of the knife quickly slicing through the first hollow. I jabbed my knife into the heads of the other two before grabbing the cage as they fell to the floor. I then flash stepped back toward Sado, just as the leeches exploded.

I held up the cage and looked at Yuichi with a raised eyebrow. "You need to be more careful, you know"

Said parakeet lowered his head, avoiding looking at my face. "I'm sorry"

"Don't worry about it" I grinned. "I'm just glad you're alright, you silly bird"

I handed the cage over to Sado, who took it without question. "Take better care of him this time, alright?"

"Thank you, Transfer student"

"Just call me Yumika, Okay?" I received a nod as my answer, then turned around. "Come on, Rukia might need our help"

 **XxxxX**

Fortunately, Rukia hadn't gone too far from where we were, and we found her rather quickly. And she wasn't the only one we found.

"Ichigo!"

Ichigo, well, his body, was laying on the ground behind Rukia, which understandably worried Sado.

"What's wrong, Ichigo?"

"Chad" Rukia spoke, completely ignoring the obviously upset teen. "Perfect timing. Go and hide him and the parakeet somewhere safe"

"Rukia, what the hell is going on?" I hissed. "What's wrong with Ichigo?!"

"Don't worry, he's fine. He's now in the middle of a battle"

I frowned and reluctantly turned toward him. "We don't much of a choice here. I'll take Yuichi"

Sado silently nodded before handing the birdcage to me. The parakeet inside looked down shamefully, before speaking.

"I'm sorry. It's all my fault"

"It isn't your fault, Yuichi" I tried assuring the spirit, but he shook his head.

"It's my fault everyone got hurt. It's my fault he killed mama, now he's going to kill him because of me"

"..what?" I broke the stunned silence that enveloped us after the startling revelation. "What do you mean..?"

"He said it was all my fault.. Because of me, the man and the girls got hurt.."

"Shibata.."

"It's all because I wanted to bring my mama back to life.. I'm sorry.. I want my mama to come back to life.. But.."

I felt pity for the child trapped inside the bird. The burden he's been bearing, the hope he had.. All for nothing. As much as I wish it was possible, there was no way to bring someone back from the dead.

"Wait" Rukia spoke up, a frown on her face. "Did someone tell you that he would bring your mother back from the dead? Did someone tell you there was a way to do that?"

"Yes.."

"I'm sorry, Yuichi... But there is no way to bring your mother back"

The look on Yuichi's face broke my heart. Someone so young didn't deserve a fate like this. It made my anger toward the hollow rise, but at the moment, I couldn't do anything.

"Rukia, you should go find Ichigo.." I murmured as I sat down on the ground with Yuichi's cage in front of me. "He might need your help"

"But.."

"We'll be fine here. Ichigo is the one you need to worry about"

I could tell she was reluctant, but she nodded her head anyway and ran off in the direction of Ichigo's reiatsu.

"Don't worry, Yuichi" I smiled faintly at the bird. "When Ichigo is done with that mean hollow, he'll come back and send you to Soul Society"

Yuichi looked distressed, eyes widening slightly, so I quickly continued. "It's okay. Soul Society is a very nice place!"

"How do you know?"

I hesitated for a moment, shooting a glance toward Sado before leaning in closer to the bird. "Can I tell you a secret?" I whispered. Seeing him nod, I continued. "Because I've been there"

"But.. Shouldn't it be a place for dead people?"

I nodded. "It is. That's another secret you have to keep.. I'm dead too. Have been for a long time"

Yuichi gasped. "How are you here then?"

"This is a fake body. As to how I got here, that's a very long story.." I chuckled softly. "But you really shouldn't be scared of going to soul society. You might even meet your mother there"

"Really?" His eyes lit up in excitement.

Truthfully, he might actually never find his mother, who knows where she ended up. But, looking at his face, I couldn't bring it upon myself to destroy his hope. So I just nodded. "Really"

I noticed the fight had ended when a bright light shot up into the air. I recognised it, despite only seeing it a few times in my life. That light was summoning the gate to hell.

Shinigami could only cleanse sins that were committed after a soul was turned into a hollow. When a hollow gained major sins while still human, they went to hell. I was actually glad to see it, as it meant that hollow would be properly punished for what he did.

"It's over, Yuichi. You're free now. The bad man won't bother you again"

 **XxxxX**

I didn't stay long after that. While they were distracted with Yuichi, I snuck off to an out of sight spot to watch them perform a konso* on the spirit, then left to go back to the shouten.

I still vaguely remembered what it felt like, to send someone to Soul Society. It didn't happen that much, given my unseated status, but there were times where I had the opportunity to. Back then, I felt like I was doing something good. But now...

I lied to Yuichi. I didn't think Soul Society was that good of a place, especially Rukongai. But, it would be better for him. If he stayed here, he'd become a hollow.

I hated shinigami, hated them for abandoning us all those years ago. But even I could understand their importance in our world.

I noticed something from the corner of my eye, and it made me freeze. That flash of silver, it was so familiar. I shook my head, I had to be imagining it. They couldn't be here, they hadn't been in Karakura in a few years, last I heard from Kisuke.

It must've been my guilty conscience acting up again. It had happened a few times through the years. I missed them, I missed them a lot. But I didn't deserve to be with them. It was about time I accepted it.

I would never see them again.

 **XxxxX**

 **I was actually afraid I wouldn't be able to get this out this week. But here it is.**

 **Not one of my favourites. I'll probably try rewriting this one later on, but for now, this'll do.**

 **Enjoy!**

 **Angie_Sixx**

 **Konso = Soul Buriel**


	4. Chapter Four

**Part One**

 **Chapter Four**

I wasn't exactly sure how I got into this situation, this honestly wasn't how I was expecting my day to go. It started as it usually did over the last month, until I got called into the principal's office, along with Sado, Keigo, Mizuiro, Ichigo, Rukia, Tatsuki and Orihime.

I could understand why the first five were here, and I was here because the gym teacher didn't like me that much. But Tatsuki and Orihime were innocent. Actually, I was with them during the whole Don Kanonji indecent, the reason we were called in here, so I was also innocent!

"This.. This..!" The gym teacher spluttered out, his neck muscles straining. "was broadcasted nationwide the other day!"

He played a clip of the evening of the incident, which contained footage of Ichigo being tackled by guards as he was running toward the hospital the show was being filmed at. To be honest, I was quite jealous. I had always wanted to be on t.v.

"Ichigo Kurosaki! Do you know how much dishonor you brought upon this school with the airing of this footage?" he continued to yell, grabbing Ichigo by the collar of his shirt.

"Kagine-sensei!" Tatsuki spoke up as she stepped forward. "Kurosaki and Kuchiki were on television, so I can understand why they were called in. But there's no reason why Inoue-san, Shihoin-san and I should be here"

"Weren't you there, too?"

"By coincidence. We met them by accident and were not involved. And so, We're going back to class. Let's go, Orihime, Yumika"

I stuck a tongue out at Keigo, who tried to leave with us, and turned around to head to the door. But before I even reached it, Kagine's voice stopped me.

"Not so fast, Shihoin! You're not as innocent as you think!"

I turned around to see what he meant, and noticed the scene on the screen had changed. It was now panning on the audience behind the lump of guards and Ichigo. I squinted, failing to see now I was involved, then I noticed it. My unique appearance was just behind them, although just barely noticeable.

Well, crap. Let's just hope no one important has watched this show yet. Especially while squinting. I could already imagine the others laughing at this.

"Oh come on" I scoffed. "You can't even tell that's me!"

"You're not wiggling your way out of this one, Shihoin"

"Uhm, Kagine-sensei.." Keigo spoke up unsurely. "Why are Mizuiro and I here?"

"You were with him, but did nothing to stop him. You're just as guilty!"

"What's the fuss?" Keigo muttered. "Just 'cuz we were on tv?"

"'Just 'cuz'?! Haven't you realised that you're here precisely because of that lack of awareness?! I'm flabbergasted!"

"I'm so sorry"

We all turned toward Rukia, who had crocodile tears forming in her eyes. In the last month, she had grown to be a much better actor. Not as good as I was, but getting there.

"It's all my fault" she wailed, pressing a handkerchief to her eyes as she wiped away her fake tears. "I couldn't stop Kurosaki-kun, who was so determined to get on tv. It's my fault! I really tried my best, but.."

"Aah, don't cry, Kuchiki!" Kagine-sensei was immediately by the dark haired girl's side, trying to console her.

While he did that, I noticed the open window was left unguarded. I poked Ichigo on the shoulder, and gestured to the window when he looked at me. He seemed to get my message, and was soon passing it on.

Ichigo was the first out, and helped me down before Sado followed. Keigo had just slipped out when Kagine caught onto us, and we quickly took off while he yelled behind us.

We eventually met up with Tatsuki, Orihime and Rukia. I had no idea how the latter escaped judgement, but it was the first time in a long time I was grateful to a shinigami, and a Kuchiki no less.

"All's well that ends well" Keigo grinned broadly.

"All thanks to Rukia" I grinned, throwing an arm over the much shorter girl's shoulders. "You're a really great actress, ya know"

"Oh, please.." she acted bashful, in her over the top 'teenage girl' voice.

"Don't compliment her" Ichigo scoffed. "She tried to sell me out".

"She should've. Even I got caught up in that mess because of you! And if it weren't for her act, we'd still be stuck in there"

"That's right" Rukia smirked. "It was all an a.c.t. I wouldn't dream of selling out a friend like Kurosaki-kun"

I laughed at the two of them, quite surprised at how the Shinigami was acting. It wasn't everyday a noble acted like this. The laugh died down, however, when Rukia's phone started beeping.

"By the way, Kurosaki-kun, may I speak to you?" Rukia spoke up, as if for a second her entire demeanour didn't change. She didn't even wait for Ichigo to answer before turning toward us.

"Please excuse us, everyone" It seems she didn't even need Ichigo's verbal agreement, as when she started running from us, he followed.

I turned toward the rest with a sheepish smile. "I'm sorry everyone, but I, uhm... I need to.. Go use the bathroom! I'll see you later!" without giving them an opportunity to say anything, I ran off after Rukia and Ichigo.

"That's not even the way to the bathroom.." Tatsuki muttered under her breath.

 **XxxxX**

Nothing. For the last few days, nothing had happened. Whenever Rukia's phone beeped, the hollow was already dealt with by the time the duo arrived. It was suspicious, but also boring. Since they didn't seem to be in any immediate danger, I took off to take a breath once or twice a day.

Today was one such day. I currently had no idea where Ichigo and Rukia were, and honestly, I didn't care much. Right now, catching up on some sleep was more important. Following those two aroundy was much more tiring than I thought it would be.

It was bright out today, so I found myself a nice spot on the grass under a tree where the sunlight wouldn't hit me. A few times I heard some old ladies scolding me under their breath because of the way I was laying down in a skirt, but I paid them no mind. I was too old to be scolded by them.

I was just starting to doze off when I felt it. Numerous hollows were popping up around Karakura town. My nose scrunched up in annoyance as I tried to ignore it. I was serious about getting some sleep today, but apparently someone out there was against me. The ground underneath me was starting to shake.

"Please don't tell me.." I groaned and cracked open eye, using it to look to my side. In the distance, I saw a hollow terrorising some soul. "Great. Just great"

I valued sleep, but souls were more important. That part of me hadn't changed, although I wouldn't admit that a part of me was still shinigami. With a scowl, I stood up and slid my school bag back over my shoulder before leisurely making my way over to the hollow.

Getting closer to it, I could make out it's appearance more clearly. It was a quadruped hollow, with a feline shaped face and rounded ears, black lines trailed down from the inner corners of it's empty eye sockets. While most of it's body was covered by the same substance as it's mask, there were tufts of tan, spotted fur here and there, most prominently on it's tail.

It had the soul, which I could now see was a young boy, pinned on the ground underneath one of it's large paws. The kid was squirming, causing the hollows claws to dig into it's skin. I sighed and looked around the ground before I found what I was looking for. I picked up a large rock and bounced it on my palm, checking it's weight before I deemed it right.

Clenching my fingers around the rock, I took aim and threw it with all the strength my gigai could muster. I was satisfied to hear the hollow screech as the rock struck it's mask. It stumbled back, releasing it's hold on the boy, and turned it's attention back to me. It's snarl, which was permanently stuck on it's face, seemed to grow more.

It first started stalking toward me, it's body crouched low on the ground, but it's speed slowly increased until it was running. A grin spread on my face, and my feet started moving as I started running to meet it halfway. When it got close to me, it lashed out a paw that I avoided by leaping up into the air.

I brought my leg up and attempted to bring it down onto it's head, but it surprised me by throwing the tip of it's tail, which had grown spikes, toward me. I barely managed to dodge it, one of the spikes managed to slice into my calf. At least it wasn't too deep.

"Hmph.." the hollow grumbled, it's voice deep. "I'm surprised a human like you could dodge that"

"It was rather easy" I scoffed. "It was rather slow"

"Oh?" it's gaze went to the bleeding wound on my leg. "I still got you. Wouldn't that make you even slower"

I opened my mouth to retort, but found myself caught. Damnit. He was right. "I-It doesn't matter! I don't need to be faster than you to beat you"

"And how are you going to do that? Hmm?"

The way it spoke was so smug, like it knew something I didn't. It pissed me off. I attempted to step forward, but found that I was unable to. Like my legs didn't want to listen to me. I looked down and saw that they were perfectly normal, but no matter how I struggled, they wouldn't move.

"It seems it's started to take affect" the hollow laughed.

"What's starting to take affect?!"

"The barbs on my tail are poisonous. Just one neck and a paralytic poison will enter your bloodstream. Judging by the fact that you can't even bend your leg, I'd say it's already above your knees. When it reaches your heart, it Will stop beating" seeing the alarm on my face, the hollow started chuckling and began moving closer to where I was frozen. "But don't worry. I'll eat you before then"

I started struggling again with renewed vigour, but my legs didn't even budge. I didn't even notice the hollow had crossed the distance between us and was now in front of me, mouth open as it prepared to take a bite out of me. I acted quickly then, reaching into my shool bag and digging around desperately until I found something. It was a loose pen, and I quickly ripped it out of the bag and stabbed it into the underside of the hollow's jaw.

It screeched loudly, and out of anger it struck me hard with it's paw, sending me flying to the side. I hit the ground hard enough for the breath to be knocked out of me, and rolled a few meters until coming to a painful halt, my back hitting a tree.

The hollow was looking at me with such rage that it even frightened me a little. I was helpless in this gigai, especially now with the hollow's poison flowing through my blood. There was only one thing I could do, but it was risky. If I left my gigai, there would be a brief moment where my reiatsu would be uncontrollable, and it could possibly alert others. People I didn't want to alert. But it seemed to be my only choice.

Despite the pain in my shoulder, I tried reaching for my bag, but got only air. I looked to where it was supposed to be and saw it was gone. Alarmed, I quickly looked around the area and saw it a distance away, the strap was broken. The hollow was getting closer, so I tried to pull myself in the direction of the bag, my muscles protested against this.

Now matter how hard I pulled, how fast I tried to be, it didn't look like I was getting closer. I turned my head to the hollow, and saw it was nearly on top of me. My breath quickened in fear, my body trembling even more. Would this really be it this time?

A rock struck the hollow's head. It growled and swung it's head in the direction the rock came from. The boy I saved was there, holding my bag in his hand. It seemed he noticed it was important.

"Leave her alone!" a new voice cried out. Looking toward it, I saw a girl I didn't notice before. She was the same age as the boy, with the same features. They were probably twins.

She had the front of her shirt lifted up slightly, using it to hold some rocks. She grabbed one and threw it at the hollow, dragging it's attention from who I assumed was her brother. While the hollow was distracted by the girl, the boy slid my bag over to me, although it took him some effort.

When my bag was close enough, I threw open the flap and dug through it as quickly as I could until I found what I was looking for. I pulled out the candy dispenser and held it by my mouth. The gikongan* popped into my mouth, and I swallowed it immediately.

My reiatsu exploded as my soul form separated from my gigai, but I reigned it in within a few seconds. The hollow turned toward me, eye sockets widening in surprise when he saw me.

"S-Shinigami?!"

I didn't blame it for mistaking me as one. It had been some time since I was in soul form, and unlike the others, I still wore my modified shihakusho*. I had torn off off the legs of my hakama, they use to be just above my knee, but I had grown since then, and they now reached mid-thigh. I was glad the shihakusho had been big on my then, as because of my growth, it now barely fit me. But, it hadn't changed that much around the chest area, to my disappointment.

My hand went to my side, and brushed against the hilt of my zanpakuto*. I grinned as my fingers curled around it, my eyes going to the hollow.

"Oh, you're so going to regret being born now"

 **XxxxX**

 **Hello Everyone!! I'm soo sorry this chapter is late! I work and post on my tablet, but it's charger point broke and we couldn't afford to have it fixed until now.** **I'd like to thank everyone who has followed and favourited this story, you have no idea how much it means to me!** **I hope you all enjoy the chapter**

 **AngieSixx**

 **Gikongan = Artificial Soul Pill**

 **Shihakusho = Robes worn my shinigami**

 **Hakama = Pants, basically**


	5. Chapter 5

**Part One**

 **Chapter Five**

The hollow's tail was swishing around in agitation as it watched me, eyes locked onto mine. We continued to stare at each other, no one blinking. Well, that is, until I couldn't keep my eyes open any longer.

"Hah!" the hollow cried out, sounding quite pleased.

"No fair! You don't even have eyes!" I childishly stuck out my tongue at him, pulling down the lower lid of my right eye.

Somewhere to the side, the two children were watching us, disbelief clear on their faces. I couldn't blame them. It's not everyday you see a woman clad in black have a stare off with a monster.

"I win, so I get to attack first without you dodging!"

"Wait, what?" I blinked in surprise, but received no answer.

Instead, the hollow leapt toward me with it's sharp claws extended. I just barely escaped him using flash step, ending up on some monkey bars not too far from the hollow.

"What the hell?!" I stood up straight, pointing at the hollow in outrage. "we never made any rules!"

"I did" it shrugged. "I just didn't tell you about them"

"Bah! I should've known, you can't trust a hollow" I glowered at the hollow before raising my palm. "Hado Thirty Three, Sokatsui*!"

The hollow leapt out of the way, dodging the blast of blue fire I had sent it's way. It struck the ground near my gigai, and the gikon* inside of it squealed.

"Hiiiimeee-saaamaaa!" it whined in a high pitched voice. "You almost hit me!"

"Then get out of the way" I snapped at her. It had been so long since I had used her, I had forgotten how annoying she could be. "And take the children with you"

"But Hiiimee-saaamaaa.."

"What is it?!"

"I can't move"

"Oh"

I had completely forgotten about the poison affecting my gigai. Well, it's a good thing it wasn't a real body, because I'm sure the poison has already reached it's chest. I had to get the hollow away from my gigai and the children. Tessai would never let me live it down if I got this gigai destroyed. I started to grin as I recalled a game I once saw some children playing.I flash stepped over to the right of the hollow, it could barely let out a cry of surprise before I kicked it's side as hard as I could. It screamed, rather high pitched, as it was sent flying.

"Touchdown!" I grinned triumphantly.

"Uhm.."

I looked toward the girl, who was looking at the ground while scuffing it with her shoe."It's 'Goal'"

"..oh. Whoops" I laughed awkwardly while scratching the back of my head. "Well, I've got to go kill that monster. I'll be back soon"

I didn't wait for them to say anything, to desperate to get out of that embarrassing situation as fast as I possibly could. Talk about a bruised ego. I don't think I would've lived it down if anyone else heard that blunder. I found the hollow a few metres away from where we originally were, it's body crashed into a tree. Said tree was now laying on the ground. I hope I don't get in trouble for deforestation. It stumbled up and looked at me, a growl bursting free from it's snout.

"You'll regret that"

I was about to retort, but then it did that shocked me speechless. It stood up. On two legs. What the hell. How was this possible? Wasn't it supposed to be like a cheetah? Cheetah's can't stand up on two legs.

"Dude! I'm pretty sure you're violating some nature laws here"

"The laws of Nature don't count for hollows" It grumbled before rolling it's shoulders. It's sleek build was slowly being replaced by muscles, I could see veins strain against the non-armoured parts of it's body.

Before it could complete it's transformation, I lunged at it. It tried to block my blow, but it's arm moved to slow and I slipped right past it. I swung a fist and struck it's mask, the force sent it stumbling back. I grinned as I landed on the ground.

"Oh? You could've dodged that in your previous form. Might it be that you've abandoned speed in favour of brute force?"

It didn't answer me, instead it snarled and brought it's fist down where I was standing. I jumped out of the way, watching as the first created a crater where I use to stand.

I didn't really notice it before, but now it was getting hard to ignore. The amount of hollows appearing was impossibly high. There was no way Soul Society wouldn't notice this. I had to finish up here and get to Kisuke. He would know what was happening.

"Sorry man. It's been fun and all, but I have to wrap this up" My fingers slid around the hilt of my Zanpakuto, it almost felt strange to hold her again. My zanpakuto took the shape of a wakazishi with a black and yellow hilt, matching with it's black scabbard. The blade sung as I withdrew it from it's sheath, it was a melody I had missed. I leapt forward, my zanpakuto's blade glinting in the sunlight as I brought it down onto the hollow's mask.

But it never connected with the target.

The hollow had it's one arm raised, blocking my blow. It's snarl curved up into a grin, before he slammed his free fist into my side.I managed to catch myself this time, landing in a crouch on the ground. The hand that wasn't holding up my zanpakuto was pressed against my now aching ribs.

"Tch.. Can't believe I forgot about the claws.." I grumbled.I didn't have time for a drawn out fight. Getting in close now seemed like it would take some time, so the only choice I have is kido. I honestly didn't think I'd ever be thankful for Tessai teaching me kido. "Bakudo sixty one, Rikujokoro*!"

Six beams of light of light surrounded the hollow, and it tried swatting it. But when it touched one of the beams, it jerked it's paw back as if it was shocked. The beams then lodged themselves into it's midsection, paralyzing it. I acted quickly then. I couldn't perform a level sixties kido without an incantation for long. I flashed stepped in front of it, and with a cry, brought my sword down through it's mask. It screeched as it's mask started to crumble and fade away, followed by it's body.

"Hiiimeee-saaamaaa"

I bit back a groan, I had already forgotten about the gikon in my damaged body. I resheathed my zanpakuto in it's scabbard before flash stepping back over to them. The two kids had helped the gikon up into a sitting position against the tree. It seemed that most of the gigai had been paralyzed, but, unfortunately, the mouth was still unaffected.

"Hime-sama! What happened? Why did you put me in this gigai? I can't move it at all! And it's very owie!"

The gikon continued to whine as I picked up my school bag, and it was difficult to block her out. I found what I was looking for, a fingerless glove with a skull print on it, and slid it onto my hand. Mid-sentence, I cut off the gikon by touching it's forehead with the glove and caught the gikongan with my free hand.

"She was starting to give me a headache" I sighed as I tossed the glove and the gikon back into my bag.I hoisted my gigai over my shoulder and turned my attention to the two children, who were silently staring at me. I can only imagine what was going through their head.

"Uh.. I think a shinigami will come by to send you to Soul Society, at some point.." I muttered unsurely. I could've done it, but I didn't want to be the one to do the deed. "Until then, just.. Stay away from more of those monsters, yeah? Good luck"

"Wait!"

"What is it?"

"Thank you.. For saving my brother and I"

Something swelled within my chest, something I hadn't felt in a long time. A small smile grew onto my face, but I refrained from looking back at them. Using my free hand, I waved at the two of them. I hoped Ichigo would discover them soon, before a hollow got them or worse, they became hollows themselves. But I didn't have time to dwell on it. The amount of hollows appearing was concerning, and I needed to see Kisuke

XxxxX

"Kisuke!"

As soon as I slid open the door of the shouten, I found Kisuke and Tessai already standing there. The blond shopkeeper snapped open his paper fan and held it in front of his mouth.

"Oh, Yumika-chan! I knew I sensed you. You should be more careful, we wouldn't want the wrong people catching wind of you living in Karakura"

"It's a bit too late for that, Kisuke" I scoffed before tossing my gigai at him. Tessai caught it before it could hit him, much to my disappointment.

"What happened to your gigai?"

"It's just paralyzed. Nothing you can't fix. Now, would you mind telling me what's going on?"

"Well, it seems Ichigo had a run in with a Quincy"

"A...Quincy?"

I had only heard stories of Quincy, they had been destroyed years before I was even born. They were a race of humans who developed powers to defend themselves against hollows, they were also a threat to Soul Society, as they completely destroyed hollows instead of purifying them, upsetting the balance.

"This isn't good, Kisuke" I frowned. "All this hollow activity will make Soul Society suspicious. We have to put a stop to this before things get too bad"

"Don't worry, we will. We were just about to head out"

"Without me? I'm hurt, Kisuke. It's a good thing I arrived when I did, otherwise I would've been left out of all the fun"

We split up shortly after we left the shoten, apparently I had missed something even with my amazing observation skills. Namely, I missed Ichigo's friends being attacked. So while Kisuke and Tessai went off to handle them, I had to take care of all the extra hollows, because the shinigami assigned here decided it was a good idea to give her powers to a human. Shinigami these days were so irresponsible!

I'd say that slicing through all these weak hollows reminded me of my days as a shinigami, but I wasn't this active on the field. Hell, I was basically just a glorified messenger because let's face it, I was weak. But doing this, especially wearing these robes, left a bitter taste in my mouth. I wanted to forget those days, yet here I was, doing the job of those I despised. Oh, the others would never let me live it down if they saw me now.

I had probably only been busy for about ten or twenty minutes, although it felt like hours, when I got a call from Kisuke. Apparently I was closer to the high school, where Orihime was, and had to pick her up. I started yelling at him for changing my orders, something I hated as I preferred finishing one thing before doing another, but he put the phone down in my ear. The bastard would be getting it later, that's for sure.

I arrived just in time to dispatch an opportunistic hollow who thought he could munch on the group of unconscious kids. I recognised some of them as kids from my class, but none of them mattered as much as Orihime did. She had been my first real friend in years, after all. She didn't seem to be injured, but judging that wasn't one of my skills. I had to get her to Tessei to be sure.I grabbed her hairpins from the ground, I recalled her telling me that they were important to her, before I picked up the busty teen, hooking my arms underneath her legs and back since carrying her bridal style would make traveling way easier. I recognised one of the faces as Tatsuki, one of Orihime's friends, and I briefly considered bringing her with, but she didn't appear to be injured, and Orihime was my mission. So I left her behind.

With flash step, it didn't take me long to get to the shoten. Tessai was already waiting for me, and I handed Orihime over to him. I still didn't know why I had to bring her here specifically, but earlier Kisuke had mentioned something about their unusually strong reiatsu's being interesting. Speaking of Kisuke, I found the blond bastard sitting in his usual spot, snapping his handfan shut when he saw me come opened his mouth to speak, but before he could even get a syllable out, my foot connected with his face.

"You bastard!" I hissed at him, rubbing the dirty sole of my sandle against his face. "Didn't anyone tell you it's rude to put the phone down in someone's ear?!"

I could just hear the muffling against my shoes, probably just half assed apologies, but didn't let up for a few moments, revelling in his torment for a while until I was satisfied. When I lowered my leg, he tried rubbing the dirt off of his face while pouting at him.

"Why exactly are Sado and Orihime here?" I arched an eyebrow in question at him, crossing my arms over my chest.

"It seems that the two of them hold some sort of power"

"Makes sense.. I'm satisfied with that answer. On to more pressing matters.. Why the hell are there so many hollows? One tiny hollow bait shouldn't be luring so many here. Do you think that bastard might have a hand in this?"

"It is quite possible. But it could also be the amount of strong reiatsu's drawing them here"

I breathed out a sigh and pinched the bridge of my nose, I don't know why, but my gut was telling me that said bastard had a hand in this. He was making his move. But that would have to wait until the current threat had been dealt with.

"Kisuke, what are my orders?"

"Find Kurosaki-san and Kuchiki-san, and make sure they don't die"

"Even if it means revealing myself?"

"Even if it means revealing yourself"

I looked up at Kisuke, noticing the serious look in his eyes, before nodding and turning toward the door. This mentality was something that I had developed when I was younger, and it never faded. When I received an order, I would fulfil it. No matter what it took.

XxxxX

Finding Kurosaki Ichigo had been... Difficult. Not because it was hard to pinpoint his reiatsu, no, any foot soldier could do that. It was hard because the closer I got to his location, the more hollows swarmed me. Taking out each and everyone who got in my way was taxing, and I couldn't even use shunpo to get through them as wherever I jumped to, another hollow was there.

A cracking sound caught my attention, and when I looked up, I noticed the sky was actually starting to crack like glass. I swore and redoubled my efforts to get through the swarm, this was starting to get bed, and the feeling that I had, that it had been him who was involved, grew. This wasn't normal, and if things aren't normal, he usually had his hand in it.

I relented a little when I noticed that Kisuke and the rest had arrived on the scene, which meant things might not end up as screwed up. But I had to get there in time, I had to make sure Ichigo and Rukia didn't end up dying, which they most like would if I didn't get them out of there. Neither of them could even dream about taking on the menos that was literally tearing itself out of Hueco Mundo.

Ichigo's reiatsu was acting up, and I had this sinking feeling that he was doing something stupid. Which meant I couldn't be delayed by the small fry anymore. I had an idea, I just hoped it wouldn't backfire and I end up in the mouth of a hollow. I shunpo'd as another hollow tried to munch on me, and from there, I used any hollow that came into my path as a stepping stone. It felt almost like a game, moving through the hollows like they were trees and branches instead of monsters intent on making me a snack.

When I finally escaped the swarm, leaving them confused and rather irritated, I went on to find Kisuke. Coincidentally, he was with one of my charges. Just as I expected, Ichigo had in fact tried to do something stupid, and I couldn't help but sigh. If only the boy wasn't so stupid, he'd make a fine shinigami.

"He's a real piece of work, that Ichigo"

"Oh, Yumika. I was wondering when you would be joining us" Kisuke spoke up as he gazed at me from the corner of his eye.

"Traffic was terrible"

"Yumika.. So I was right, You really are-"

"From the Shihoin clan? That's right. Should've known I couldn't hide it from a shinigami from one of the noble families. I assume that you already know this, but if you even think of informing Soul Society of my whereabouts, I will kill you and do so without hesitance or remorse"

The look on Rukia's face confirmed that the weight of my threat had set in, and feeling satisfied, I turned my attention back to the blond. "He's doing this, I'm certain"

"You think that about everything that goes wrong, Yumika. Even when it's just us running out of milk"

"Well, I'm sure he's intent on ruining our lives! And being without milk is one way of ruining the morning. But that's not the point, Kisuke! This is actually something serious. A menos, of all things"

Kisuke sighed. "You might have a point this time, Yumika, but we can't go assuming things. This would be pretty bold, even for him"

"What he did to us was pretty bold, and yet, he still did it"

"Uhm.."

Interrupting the conversation Kisuke and I were having, Rukia looked between the two of us with a rather confused look on her face. I opened my mouth, dead set on revealing who exactly we were talking about, but the look Kisuke gave me made me shut it.

"No one important. Focus on Ichigo" I settled for that instead, crossing my arms over my chest as I started to sulk. I just wanted someone to know that that bastard wasn't as innocent as people believed.

Not in the mood for standing anymore, I plopped down onto my behind and watched the battle from there. Kisuke didn't seem to be worried about what'll happen, so I wouldn't worry either. Ichigo would find a way to handle this, as would the Quincy, even though I didn't know who it was. I suppose I would just have to have faith, and hope that Soul Society wouldn't react to this.

I said I wouldn't worry, but when I noticed the menos was starting to form a cero, I couldn't help it. If that thing went off, it could cause some serious damage, and a lot of injuries. Maybe even fatalities. But still, when I looked at Kisuke, there wasn't a single trace of worry on the blonde's face.

"Kisuke.."

"It'll be fine, Yumike. Just watch" he reassured me with his usual smile.

I sighed and once again watched Ichigo. Kisuke had a lot of faith in this kid, and I couldn't understand why. That is, until I saw it for myself. The menos fired it's cero toward Ichigo and the kid I assumed as the Quincy, and to my shock, Ichigo blocked the cero with his sword. Not even some higher ranked shinigami could pull off what this kid just did.

I don't know what Ichigo just did, and I hoped Kisuke would have an explanation for me later, but just made a menos retreat. In all my years alive, I've never actually seen a menos retreat, I've seen them get killed, but never watched it fall back into the darkness of Hueco Mundo, pulling the friggen sky closed behind it as if it was a curtain.

I thought Kurosaki Ichigo was just a normal human who got powers from a shinigami, I thought that he would be weak and would die quickly. I should've known that this wasn't true the moment Kisuke asked me to watch him, but back then, I had assumed that it was just his curiosity. But what happened today proved me wrong, that Ichigo was more than just a human.

But if he wasn't human, what in the hell was he?

 **XxxxX**

Hello everyone! I'm seriously sorry about how long it took for this to get published. My tablet is once again broken (a software issue( and I can't afford to fix it. And I also couldn't afford data to get online until today, I'm posting this via basic mobile browser because my phone doesn't support the app, so this might not come out well.

Anyway, I hope you guys like it!

Angie_Sixx


End file.
